Leigh’s Scribblings

See page 117 of this fortnight’s (20th October to 2nd November) issue of Yours magazine!!! My short story Flash Harry – which they have re-titled Where Did You Get That Hat? – is there in its glory, along with a piccie of me!!

I am over the moon. I was flashing the mag at everyone today: all my workmates, the lady in Spar from whom I bought the magazine, the lady in the hairdressers next door, total strangers at bus stops (well the latter isn’t true actually)…

Woo-eeee – my fiction is in print at last!! Does this mean I have arrived?

By coincidence TV Spa-Dom was, if you recall, set to appear in the 17th October edition of My Weekly, under a new title Girlie Weekend. However, it was dropped at the last minute to make way for an ad! I guess that happens a lot in the magazine world. Advertising revenue will always take precedence. I was gutted at the time, but appearing in Yours makes up for the disappointment.

Here are some pics:

My review of the Lara Beach Hotel in Antalya is now on the Trip Advisor website: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g297962-d568401-r46018065-Lara_Beach_Hotel-Antalya_Turkish_Mediterranean_Coast.html#CHECK_RATES_CONT – I penned it under my username of SooWestMidlands!

I feel that think Nathan and I were extremely lucky to have gone to that hotel.  We only booked it two weeks before we flew, but we absolutely made the right choice.  It truly is a special place.  There is something magical about the Lara Beach that just rubs off on you and makes you feel you will never be the same again somehow!

I know that sounds a very deep way of describing a hotel, but it’s true!

Here (because I need any excuse) are a few more of our holiday piccies:

Oops, haven’t updated this for a while.

My hubby and I have just returned from an unforgettable week in wonderful Turkey. We are still on a high from the experience – well falling from it fast now we are back at work and have had to crash back to earth.

I will say I can heartily recommend the Lara Beach Hotel in Antalya. The food and drink were first class, pools and activities excellent, staff great fun and entertainment utterly superb.

It was our first time in Turkey but will definitely not be our last.

Here are a few holiday snaps to brighten up this dingy October day:

I had a lovely day at Ludlow Food & Drink Festival today. The weather was glorious – it really could not have been more perfect. Our climate seems all to cock but hey, I don’t question it – I am loving this current late surge of sun.

Anyway, it was a great day, featuring hundreds of stalls selling (and in many cases giving away free samples of) local produce. Cheeses (my favourite), ciders (second fave), chutneys, nuts, crisps, pies, sausages, jams, coffees, mayonnaises, salad dressings, ales, different varieties of honey and fudge.

Most of the stalls were inside the grounds of the 11th century Ludlow Castle, though there were also many spread out throughout the beautiful Shropshire town. The place was heaving, and there was a lovely community atmosphere.

An event like that is, I feel, every bit as good as the BBC Good Food Show, which take place at the NEC – if not better in a way. All the produce is local, everything is out in the fresh air; there may not be celebrity chefs wandering around, but everyone shares a passion for good food and drink.

I have finished Chapter 2 – or Tuesday for the purposes of the fictitious walking break schedule – of The Four Matthews and uploaded it here.

I always think my writing is rubbish, then I reread a chapter when I’ve completed it and suddenly – without boasting – it doesn’t seem such drivel after all.

I love writing this novel.  I feel so much more relaxed with it than my previous efforts.  I have lived and breathed it for the last few weeks.  I am quite proud of it thus far.

So this year’s Strictly couples have been announced.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/strictlycomedancing/couples/

To be honest, I’m a bit ‘hmm?’ about this line-up.  I had to look up who some of these people are.  Is Ronnie Wood’s ex-wife actually famous for anything other than being ditched by a Rolling Stone?  I actually think the professional dancers are more well-known.

These celebs seem a bit ‘ITV’ – more like the calibre of contestants you’re more likely to see on Dancing on Ice (a show I also enjoy and am not slagging off).  Perhaps due to the credit crunch the Beeb can’t afford anyone A-list?

I am sure they will grow on me, though.  And I know, whatever I say about the celebs, and about the fact that the wonderful acerbic Arlene has been sacked as a judge in favour of Alesha Dixon, that I will not miss a minute of the series, which starts on 18th September.  It is still my favourite programme by a mile.

Yesterday I saw the wonderful We Will Rock You at the Birmingham Hippodrome. It was truly spectacular – probably, I would say, better than the London production we caught back in 2005.

This touring production stars Kevin Kennedy, alias Curly Watts of Corrie fame, who does a great job as the old hippie Pop, former X Factor finalist Brenda Edwards, who has such unbelievable energy, as the Killer Queen, and Jonathan Wilkes, famous among other things for being Robbie Williams’ best mate, as the evil Khashoggi who wears sunglasses indoors and sports a Hitler Youth-blond quiff.

The two leads, Alex Gaumond as Galileo and Amy Hathaway – who, unbelievably, was actually the understudy – as Scaramouche, demonstrated incredible gusto, as did Wayne A. Robinson as the incongruously named tough guy Britney Spears and Georgina Hagen as Meat (as in Loaf).

The storyline – though derided by critics as silly – is a satirical dig at the increasingly ‘manufactured’ nature of modern music and the consequent dearth of ‘real’ music featuring instruments, and features plenty of typical Ben Elton humour.

A vast number of songs – to name but a few, Radio Ga Ga, Killer Queen, Under Pressure, A Kind of Magic, Headlong, One Vision, Who Wants to Live Forever, These Are the Days of Our Lives and, of course, We Will Rock You – are woven into the story in a skilful, non-cheesy way.

This show is so much more than a musical. The experience is more comparable really to a gig. The fans are encouraged to clap and sing along. Yesterday’s matinee crowd were really up for it, and gave three standing ovations.

I’ve said it before, but the theatre provides a truly addictive buzz for me. I would go and see a show every week if I could. For uplifting escapism the experience cannot be beaten.

…to Harlan Coben novels.  The American crime writer piles twist upon increasingly dark twist, while also raising many a wry smile with his use of plentiful gallows (pun intended) humour in his witty thrillers.

The one I have on the go at present is The Woods, but I have read about seven of his books back-to-back in the last couple of months.  The stories just suck you in.  I adore the way he writes.  It’s so inspiring.  I would love even a quarter of his success in the literary field.

I am delighted to say I finally have a publication date for TV Spa-Dom!!! It is going in the 17th October edition of My Weekly magazine and is being renamed Girlie Weekend!!

I will have a good week that week, as by coincidence Flash Harry is going into Yours magazine on 20th October! The dates are on the calendar. This news has cheered me up, especially after I received another rejection letter from Take a Break yesterday. Apparently Heather’s Headache is not suitable for their requirements. Nice to know I am not totally worthless.

As far as my novel is concerned, I am still greatly enjoying working on The Four Matthews. Writing gives me such a high.  Creating characters and situations is so wonderful.  It makes me feel as though I have such power at my fingertips.

Mum and I had a wonderful day today at Magnalonga, the annual seven-mile walk around the gorgeous town of Ludlow in Shropshire which offers participants, at each stage along the route, a five-course meal of locally produced ingredients. 

We were unbelievably lucky with the weather. It has been one of the nicest days of the year. If we’d been caught in heavy rain, the like of we have seen a lot of lately, it would have been dreadful.

To summarise, these were the courses we had and the stops we made along the seven-mile course:

1. Snack: bag of Tyrrells sweet chilli and red pepper crisps and bottle of water to get us going from Dinham Bridge. We were provided with a souvenir glass for our drinks along the way. A group of young violin players were performing at the start point.

2. Starter: cheese, tomato and pesto quiche, washed down with ‘Andromeda’ organic Herefordshire cider, in the back garden of a house, kindly donated for the day by a Mr and Mrs Moore, at Priors Halton. A nice jazz trio provided the music here.

3. Main course: sausage and leek hash, with Oliver’s pear cider, at Ludlow Food Centre on the A49.

4. Dessert: scrummy yummy chocolate pots, with Ludlow Brewing Company beer (don’t like beer so didn’t partake), at Felton Farm. Music was provided here by a young girl playing the violin.

5. My fave course (as you might imagine) – yummy cheeses with oatmeal biscuits in the grounds of Elm Lodge Hotel, washed down with Ludlow Festival Cider, which was pressed at last year’s Ludlow Food Festival. The cheeses were Ludlow Blue, Oakly Park Cheddar and ‘The Cheese With No Name,’ so called because a competition was run to find a name for this new local cheese but none of the entries were up to scratch, hence the name stuck! This latter one, which was quite similar to Brie, was actually my favourite cheese. Music came courtesy of an Indian guy playing a flute.

6. Finally a wee sloe gin was served at the finish point, back at Dinham Bridge.

It was a brilliant day with a lovely friendly, community atmosphere. We saw some picturesque scenery and met some nice people. I will definitely be back.